Life Never Gives You an Easy Road
by Lupa-for-Life
Summary: Miko was a hanyou. Imperfect in a world of angels. Her life was turned around when she was picked up in the forest by Koga, it turns around again when he falls in love with her. This however, and a chance meeting with Kagome threaten to ruin everything.


**Important A/N: **Everyone who has previously read this story, I want you to know that it was removed because it inhaled vigerously. I am now reposting it after taking the time to revamp it entirely. I fixed spellin errors and added some meat to the watered down plot line. Though i am still not satisfied with it, seeing as i have not watched _Inuyasha _since my freshman year in high school, I do not epect it to get much better. Nunthaless I am now content to have my name on it. I haven't really changed anything important, i just made it make more sense.

**Content Warning: **There will be some adult content at the end of the chapter. You have been warned.

On a final note,I do not own Inuyasha and anything you recognize, I in no way, shape, form , or fashion claim to have created it. All titles and useage rights belong to someone else. Miko is of course, mine.

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Confused **

Chapter one:

A new development

The wind playfully whipped through the hanyou's long brown hair as she leapt and sprinted through the dark moonlit forest. Her wolfish senses took in every creature and object to either side of her as she felt her body melt into the trees. The forest was an extension of her body. This was her only pleasure. The way she was able to leap and dodge every barricade the forest threw at her made it seem like it was playing with her. Joy trilled through her.

The full moon over her head made her howl with delight. This was her element. When she was like this nothing else really seemed to matter. Not even _them_.

She shuddered, remembering the look in the eyes of her new "family" when Koga accepted her into their pack. Having not been rightfully accepted into the pack by birth, there was some _almost _understandable animosity between her and the others of her age. She was a hanyou. She was imperfect in a world surrounded by angels. The tension was only made stronger by the fact that Koga seemed to have taken a liking to her. Not that she knew why.

The girls always made sure that the hanyou knew when he had flirted with her by teaching her a lesson about where a hanyou's place really was. The first time it had happened, she hadn't looked anyone in the eyes for at least a week. The bruises had lasted at least as long. She would never dare call them on it, though, she knew, without a doubt in her mind, that they would kill her. And not one soul in her pack would really care.

All because of Koga and his "affections".

The girl hurled herself over a fallen log as she pushed the thought away from her mind. She was imagining it, of course, everyone would tell her. The great Koga would never settle for a pathetic half-breed, to believe otherwise was only to delude herself.

She was at home in the forest in a way no other creature could adequately describe or understand. The trees parted before her like water as she used her legs to pound out her frustrations with the world; and with herself for being so weak.

A recognizable howl filled her ears coming from directly behind her. She recognized it at once and squelched the involuntary flutter in her heart. Little flutters like that could get a girl beaten around here. How dare he follow her?

Koga caught up to her easily, running backwards even. His hands laced up behind his head as if this were nothing but an evening jog. She huffed in laughter and tried to pass it off as anger when he gazed at her with those entrancing blue eyes.

Her heart gave another flutter as he winked at her, all the light from the thousands of stars reflecting back at her through his eyes.

Determined not to be bested, at least not so effortlessly, the hanyou put on a burst of speed. He howled with delight as he sensed a game. Koga loved the thrill of the chase.

'_I'll show him'_ she thought to herself as she twisted and turned through the forest hoping to lose him as her scent doubled over on itself. Her plan was genius. If he tried to sniff her out, he wouldn't be able to tell which trail was coming and which was going.

She stood in the tracks of where she had already been and leapt the short distance into the trees above her, careful not to touch anything that might carry her scent back to him. There she sat to watch his eminent confusion.

She panted from her flight, brushing a damp strand of auburn hair out of her eyes. The wait stretched on and she began to wonder where Koga was. Surely she hadn't thrown her king that quickly…

She closed her eyes to sniff out his location. The wind blew against her sweat drenched skin as she concentrated on picking his scent out of the other smells of the forest.

Her ears twitched and she started the second before a hand covered her mouth, stifling her startled scream.

The strong arm held her in place as she was pulled back against a warm body, another arm snaked its way around her waist ensuring that she could not escape.

The hanyou struggled against him, writhing against her captor in what even she knew was a futile attempt to wriggle free. The man at her back groaned and ground himself against her. She felt him shift forward as his hot breath blew across her neck. He whispered gently into her ear,

"Don't do that, little hanyou. You have no idea what it does to me,"

She started again as she recognized the voice. Heat blossomed through her cheeks as she felt her whole face and most of her neck redden in embarrassment. Honestly, she should have known it was him… who else would be out here happening upon her in the trees? No one but Koga…

Koga! How dare he manhandle her like this… capturing her from behind and frightening her? Though she supposed she was asking for it after playing with him earlier. She knew Koga loved a good chase.

She sat there calmly, not moving an inch as his panting against her neck subdued. She rolled her eyes, not able to believe he had really worn himself out trying to catch her. She was not _that _fast… her eyes suddenly widened in realization.

Gently, and without further embarrassment, Koga released her, chuckling to himself as he saw her obvious discomfort.

Her eyes softened at his smile. Even if that particular smile was put there at her own expense, she had to admit it was nice seeing one there for a change. It had been so long since anyone had brought him any kind of joy. The tramp Kagome and her redundant rejections had stolen the light from his eyes. The hanyou had to admit that seeing him fawn over a human had given her a little hope. It took seven girl's unified efforts to stamp that elation from her mind.

"Thanks, Miko," Koga said in his gruff voice. "I needed a good laugh."

Miko pretended to look offended, crossing her arms indignantly over her chest and flattening her wolf ears back against her auburn hair in the way she always did when she was trying to fit in. She flicked her tail in mock anger, succeeding in making him erupt with laughter.

Koga clutched his stomach and rolled back against the trunk of the tree, nearly falling off the narrow branch. The laughter was short lived, however, for once Koga had regained control of himself, he looked at her consideringly.

Miko shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, knowing all too well what it meant. It meant that he wanted her to talk about what happened. He wanted an explanation to the bruises, and the scratches. Though, just like every time this happened, she silently prayed he wouldn't have to ask; she hoped making her feel better would be enough and now he would leave her alone.

Her fears only mounted as he got that look; the look she just could not stand. _Pity. _She fought with herself not to scream at him when she knew he was only trying to help. He could not help it that everyone hated her. She knew that was her own fault for being what she was. He most certainly could not follow her around and protect her all the time. Tears began to well up in her vision. She could already picture what those girls would do to her if they caught wind of him showing her such kindness. She couldn't allow him to even look at her in the publicity of the pack. Even if he could somehow protect her, there was no way he could be there all the time, and when he wasn't _they_ would be there. She looked down at her hands and let her ears droop. Hanyou's were _supposed _to be lonely, right?

Koga sat there in silence, knowing what was troubling her all too well but hoping she would be able to tell him about it. He was a leader. It was his job to help any member of his pack in need. At this point it was only a matter of time until he had to step in on the poor girl's behalf. He sat there, waiting for her to open up to him, but she seemed content to stare down into her hands silently.

He smelt them a second before the saw them; the salty water that marked her sorrow. Yet his eyes still widened as he saw a tear hit the bark of the tree they were sitting in. His heart ached to help her and he opened his mouth to speak something wise and comforting. But before he could say a word, Miko launched herself out of the tree and back into the forest choosing to flee him in her sorrow rather than accept his kindness.

He swore to himself, as he leapt out of the tree to follow her, that when he got the name of whoever was causing her this much distress he would run them ragged. This had been going on for months. In fact, it had been going on ever since he had first noticed the girl alone in the woods. He had been overly protective of her ever since that night. She was the only one capable of tearing him away from the girl, Kagome. Ever since the first moment he declared the girl part of the pack, she would periodically either turn up sporting mysterious bruises that no one but himself seemed to notice, or disappear into the woods, sometimes for a few days.

Koga could not even rely on the bruises of the others, marking a mutual fight, to find the culprit since the hunt regularly landed several of the hunting wolves with injuries of the like. There was always a way for any suspected wolf to worm its way out of persecution.

It hadn't taken him long to figure out the source of her injuries, though the actual persons administering them had remained a mystery to him almost six months later. No one would answer to his questionings, all having "Not noticed", or "Not seen anything" and Miko herself would not volunteer any information.

It disturbed Koga, more than he cared to admit, how ostracized the girl was because of a little blood weakness. Not only that, but that his pack not only would hurt a member of its own and then _dare _to lie to his face about it, enraged him. This was not the way a pack should work. He was their King! They should not be keeping these things from him! It could almost be seen as a direct undermining of his authority and if he could find the source of Miko's anguish, he would most certainly see it publicly exterminated.

Koga jumped slightly then mentally berated himself for allowing his thoughts to distract him from the task at hand. He searched the area for the sound that had startled him and when he found it, something in his heart snapped.

There Miko sat, crumpled against a tree sobbing. Her hands covered her face from view, but one could not mistake those sounds or the shaking of her shoulders for anything else.

Anger twisted itself through him as he fought the idea that one of his own had done this. Surely there was a possibility that it had been an outsider?

Suddenly Miko squeaked, drawing him out of his reverie. She started to get up to flee him again but he reached out and caught her arm.

"Don't run away again…" he pleaded with her. He looked into her green eyes, red and puffy from crying, and without asking anything further, pulled her against him roughly, wrapping his arms around her and trying his best to comfort her.

Miko fell against him, longing to have someone to hold her. Having not even comprehended how much better she would feel wrapped in someone's arms, she had never sought anyone out. Choosing instead to suffer alone. As far back as Miko could remember, she had always been alone. There had never been anyone there to hold her…

Koga knelt on the ground, pulling her into his lap and letting her curl-up there. He whispered soothingly to her and rubbed his hand through her hair and along her back. He couldn't believe how tiny she was. She fit in his lap so perfectly… like a child. He ran a hand through her air and 'woofed' slightly.

He let her just sit there, curled-up against him until the sobbing subsided. He thought for a moment she had fallen asleep in his arms. Koga had never felt so needed. A thought which knowingly was absurd since his pack needed him, but then none of them had ever needed him like this. He was content to let her sleep there in his arms.

Miko shifted slightly in his lap and looked up at him questioningly. She was embarrassed at her irrationality and knew that now it would be extremely difficult to get out of here without telling Koga what had happened.

Koga scrunched his nose in confusion. He could tell she was embarrassed, but for the life of him, couldn't figure out why. She certainly had no reason to be embarrassed as far as he could see. It wasn't until the girl had the audacity to try and apologize to him that he figured it out.

Without a word, he lifter her up bridal style and carried her off into the woods.

Miko looked up into the eyes of her king with renewed interest. Her shame at having lost her control in front of him was replaced by the fact they were very obviously not headed back to the den.

She wrapped her arms around his neck for support and asked him where they were going.

Koga, at first, did not respond.

She wanted to ask again but she knew better than to question her king, so she nestled against his chest and waited for him to share their destination with her.

He sensed her unease and told her, very simply, that he wanted to show her something.

She stamped firmly on her curiosity not wanting to irritate him. He could be so touchy.

After several long minutes drug by, Miko began to shift uncomfortably in Koga's arms. He may be lean and muscular, but that also meant that his arms did not make for a very comfortable perch. Just as she was about to open her mouth to say something along the lines of "I can walk, you know," he set her down on the cold earth facing him.

She scowled at him for a moment before turning on her heel and looking at wherever it was he had brought them.

When she turned her eyes the sight that lay before her caught her breath in her throat.

A small lake had formed where a tiny waterfall, no more than seven feet high, spilled over from the river. Though the river was not impressive in itself, the tree that rose out of the middle of it was. The mist from the waterfall shimmered like diamonds in the moonlight.

The tree itself rose like a behemoth amongst its neighbors, branching out twice as wide and at least twice as high as those around it. It sat on a tiny island in the dead center of the small lake; its thick branches casting a deep, impenetrable shadow over the clearing it stood in, the roots enveloped the entirety of the bank on all sides.

For a moment, Miko stood there in awe, wondering how a place this beautiful could have escaped her notice. With as much time as she spent in these woods, she was certain she knew every blade of grass in her pack's territory. Now she knew she was mistaken.

"This is where I come… when I need to think," Koga said so softy from her back, that Miko wasn't even sure she was meant to have heard him.

Miko stepped forward into the clearing and cooed as her feet slid across the silken soft grass. That settled it for her, there was magic in that tree, nowhere else in the forest was the grass this soft. She walked forward until she was at the edge of the tiny lake and looked up. The braches were so intricately intertwined that she couldn't see the sky through them.

"This place is beautiful," she said, more to herself than anything.

Koga stepped up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "I know," he sighed.

Miko's heart skipped a beat and she stiffened, desperately trying to keep herself from pulling away. All the haunting things they had said to her, the threats, she shouldn't let him touch her like this. What would they say if they found out? They would most certainly have to teach her another "lesson". No one was allowed near Koga… especially little half-breeds.

Koga sensed the tension in her and almost pulled away. What was this aversion she had to being touched by him? It was a slap to his pride to think that this girl couldn't be attracted to him. He was so used to being fawned over… the prospect seemed completely alien.

A small sob escaped her and his anger instantly softened. He knew then that this must have had something to do with whoever was beating her.

'_That's right,' _he thought to himself. '_This girl was being regularly abused by someone in my pack.'_

He stroked his hand comfortingly down her back to calm her while Miko gathered herself. He felt, suddenly, so protective over this girl.

She looked up into his eyes, meeting them with her own brilliant green ones. She laughed at her own lack of emotional control and he smirked at her.

Miko pulled away from him and turned towards the lake, where she knelt down to splash some of the cool water on her face. She froze as she came face to face with her reflection. Loathing welled up inside of her as she saw the source of her problems. The root of everything that had made her life so miserable at the moment her life should have been taking a turn for the better.

She flattened her hanyou wolf ears against her head in an attempt to make them disappear within her long brown hair. This feat, of course, was in vain since the ears were still clearly visible.

Anguished, Miko struck out at her reflection splashing water on her heated face. Ironically achieving the forgotten task that had brought her to the water in the first place.

Fearing the hanyou would lose it once more, and not knowing if he could handle this level of distress again from the girl, Koga knelt at her side and lifted her chin to look at him.

"Miko, you are beautiful just the way you are. I know you won't tell me who is doing this to you, and I am not going to lie and tell you that doesn't bother me. But what I am going to tell you, is that when I figure out who is doing this, it will be taken care of."

She jerked away from him at the mention of her attackers and her eyes widened in surprise as she felt not earth and soft grass under her hand, but water.

With a splash Miko fell, without grace, into the cold lake.

Koga tried to stifle a laugh when Miko breached the surface and gasped for air, having been so surprised in her fall she went under without taking a breath.

She swam to the edge of the lake where Koga sat with his hand outstretched to help her out. Of course he knew what she was going to do. He had no misconceptions about this girl's mischievous intentions the second he grabbed her hand. But she was smiling, and if teasing him and pulling him into the lake with her would keep that smile on her face, he was willing to play the fool.

She laughed wickedly when she had a good grip on his hand and braced her legs, pulling with all her strength.

Koga feigned surprise as he splashed into the lake beside her. When he finally resurfaced, Miko had swam to the island and hefted herself out of the water in an attempt to escape his wrath.

"Great... I hope you're happy! Now I'm all wet!" Koga feh'd, trying to keep that amazing smile on her face. He noticed she had gotten out of the water so Koga swum towards the bank where the drenched Miko sat. She hunched shivering, her knees pulled up to her chest as she tried to keep warm. Her adorable ears hung low with the weight of the water that soaked her.

He crawled out of the icy lake and wrapped his arms around her. He leaned forward to whisper in her ear. His breath, hot on her neck, sent shivers all through her body as he ran his hands up her trembling arms.

All of a sudden Miko wasn't all that cold. In fact, warmth was spreading all throughout her body and burnt like fire in a trail following the touch of his fingertips.

"You should probably take off those wet clothes," Koga said softly with a purr to his voice that made her breath catch in her throat. "You simply can't sit there shivering, you might get sick."

She shuddered, trying to keep images out of her mind that involved a certain youkai throwing a certain hanyou up against a certain tree. Desire coursed through Miko's body so suddenly that she had to fight back a gasp and she leaned involuntarily against his body, pressing up against him as he chuckled knowingly.

Miko huffed and brushed him off not wanting to play that particular game. Koga's intentions may be truer than she gave him credit for, seeing as how she was the one making an ass out of herself, but that did not change the fact that he was a guy.

Koga snorted and began climbing up the tree, his tail smacking her in the nose smartly as he hefted himself above her head. She followed his retreating form with her eyes; not really wanting to look, but at the same time wanting more than anything to see.

His already beautifully sculpted body was only accentuated by the drops of water that still clung to every individual muscle. He stood over her, looking down into her with his piercing blue eyes and dropped his only source of clothing to the ground beside her feet.

Her eyes shot down his body completely of their own volition and Miko blushed at his unexpected "interest" in her.

Koga smirked and crouched down into a grouping of the branches that formed a natural nest. His invitation was obvious… but after all she had been through, all the beatings… would she go through with what her body was so desperately asking her to?

Just as her eyes had taken their own actions, her body did as well, lifting her up the tree to where Koga's form had disappeared. As she climbed the tree, he hands worked with the fastenings on her clothes, dropping them nonchalantly behind her with Koga's forgotten garment. When she finally got to the place where Koga laid waiting she was torn between wanting to lay down with him and wanting to run from this place in sheer mortification.

When Koga saw her, covering her nakedness in embarrassment he took a deep breath to keep himself from pouncing on her and tearing her in half. After all that, it would be a shame to scare her away now.

She lay down a "safe" distance away from him and looked into his eyes with such obvious fear that it almost hurt to know it was there because of him.

Koga reached out with one hand and gently pulled her closer, sliding her forward until she was, what he called, a satisfactory distance away.

Miko opened her green eyes and stared into him with fear still apparent in her eyes. Second guessing himself, Koga tried to pull back, already preparing a nonchalant comment about how he was only trying to keep her warm but she stopped him. He watched her with awe as she mustered her courage and placed her lips gently against his own.

He lifted his hand up from her side and placed it reassuringly behind her neck, pressing her against him, as he growled possessively.

After Miko seemed to have warmed up to him and lost a bit of her nervousness Koga took the initiative.

Her whimpers tore through him as he flipped her over on her back and positioned himself on top of her. If it weren't for the lustful fire in her eyes and her hands working hesitantly down his back he would have forced himself to stop on her behalf.

She nipped at his ear and he groaned, grinding himself into her. She whimpered and writhed under him. That pitiful sound brought him around just enough to question what he was doing to this poor girl. This woman, whose emotional constipation and refusal to tell him or, anyone else who was berating her, had drug him out to this forest in the first place.

He moved his lips from hers and traced a wet trail down her jawline, nibbling gently along her neck up to her ear where he whispered to her in a voice that touched her in places his hands hadn't gotten anywhere near yet.

"Are you sure you want this?" He asked her, pressing his arousal into her soft belly.

She was silent for a moment, her heavy breathing the only sound coming from her, but when he started to pull away, ashamed at what he thought was almost a huge mistake, she moaned in protest and reached down firmly wrapping her fingers around him. For a second, she sat there her hands wrapped around him, not knowing what to do. Then, Koga reached down and put his hand around hers and guided her hand slowly up and down until she gained confidence and began moving on her own.

Koga braced himself on top of her and tried not to lose control. He groaned and shuddered as she squeezed harder and picked up her pace.

All at once he cried out and ground his claws into the bark of the tree on either side of her to keep from finishing so soon. Koga grabbed her hand and wrenched it from his loins and shoved himself into her abruptly.

Miko cried out more from pain than anything, having not been properly prepared, but Koga was too far gone to hear her now. He rammed himself into her, moaning and picking up speed. She drug her nails down his back trying to get him to go easy on her. She tried to bite back a pained sound but Koga's relentless hammering made such control highly impossible.

Something seemed to stir behind his eyes and he looked at her with worry, finally realizing what his loss of control had done to her. He murmured his apologies to her but the sounds were lost to her ears. He bent forwards and gently licked her breasts and moved his hands to do the same. His calmed attentions within minutes had her back to the aroused state where he could continue his movements, however subdued. This time, with the help of his talented hands, Miko moaned in pleasure rather than pain. This reassured him and he moved his hands between them to gently rub her while he focused on keeping his motions tightly controlled and easy. Their eyes met and his gaze bored into her. She smiled weakly before her eyes drifted shut and she moaned his name.

Listening to her moaning his name and the warmth wrapped tightly around him soon had him nearing climax again. He quickly began to lose his last shreds of control and started to speed up again. When she didn't try to stop him, he let his thrusts go deeper and she cried out, arching against him. Her body clamped down around him as her climax crashed over her and he thrust into her going over the edge as well.

With one last shudder Koga leaned forward and whispered in her ear.

"Miko," his breath was shaky with strain. "Will you be my mate?"

Miko looked up into his eyes to make sure he was serious but his eyes were closed, lost in the afterglow. She leaned forward and kissed him gently. His eyes fluttered open and there was something in them that Miko had never seen in them before.

In all her years with his pack, all the nights she spent fawning over him then meeting with the consequences and fawning again. Those girls who were fighting for his courtship, for the title of his mate, who would repeatedly beat her to keep "pathetic half-breeds" from touching their leader. It never seemed to keep her away though; she was always attracted to him. As a matter of fact, who wasn't? She never intentionally went after him, but it seemed just a smile and a look exchanged between the two of them was enough to set those psychos off.

Miko looked into those crystal blue eyes and realized that she wanted to be with him. The fear from those girls had kept her from being this close to him, but now she was. And she realized she never wanted to leave.

Koga's heart melted when he saw her smile.

She nodded and he wrapped his arms around her lovingly. The calming feel of the rise and fall of each others chests lulled the two wolves to sleep. They cuddled naked and slept, relaxed in each others arms.

When Miko awoke the next morning, the first thing she noticed was that she was alone. Sleep kept her groggy at first as she rolled over reaching for him, the memory of the night before brought a warm smile to her face.

Claw marks lined the branches around her to forever mark their joining.

Miko tentatively reached out to run her fingers along those marks and for a moment, fear ripped trough her so sharply it brought a tear to her eyes.

'_What if he regrets it?' _She thought to herself. _'What if he ran from me because he didn't mean what he said…?' _She let those thoughts tear at her viciously as the tears streamed down her face. She curled up in the still warm spot where their bodies had laid together and tried desperately to get ahold on her emotions. She was not ready to go home and face him, let alone the beating that always came part and parcel with getting any attention from Koga.

She moved to rise from the tree, having shifted her anguish successfully over to anger and resentment at herself. Already Miko was working through her mind the different ways she could tell off the girls with some lie about where she was last night, or more importantly, who she _wasn't_ with.

A light breeze blew through the trees bringing with it Koga's scent. Judging by the strength of it, he wasn't very far from her.

In one fluid motion she leapt from the tree and began dressing herself, then launched into the forest after him. Determination to find why he had left her and if he felt the same about her as he had last night wrapped in her arms gripped her and drove her towards him faster.

'_No mater what his answer is,' _she thought to herself. _'I must know how he feels'_

Miko ran blindly through the forest, following only her heart and her nose trusting them to get her to Koga and the answers she so desperately wanted.

As she grew closer to the place where her senses took her, her nose also picked up a trace of blood. Worry griped her heart as she rushed into a clearing. The sight that met her there, however, made her blood boil.

There before her stood the infamous Inuyasha with Kagome on his heels. Her raven hair and miniscule skirt sent Miko raging. That was the woman whom Koga was all over for so long… For so long, Koga's life was all about Kagome and getting her to be his mate.

'_So this is where Koga ran off to,' _Miko assumed as she watched the scene play out before her. Inuyasha would charge at Koga with his gigantic sword and in turn Koga would charge back. Each trading meaningless blows and never really managing to cause any significant damage. Kagome seemed to be as exasperated with the situation as Miko was infuriated with it.

"I will kill you, Inuyasha," Koga huffed clutching a bleeding wound. "And I will take Kagome for myself!"

The worry Miko had felt at the sight of Koga's blood staining the dirt and the motions she had already begun to make to go to his side were stopped the second those words left his lips.

Miko was stunned. Disbelief roared through her as she thought of the feelings for her she had allowed herself to believe he had.

No. Apparently she was just another piece of ass to him. No better than the girls who beat her until she couldn't walk. Just another one of his fuck toys.

"I swear on my life, you mongrel," Inuyasha shouted with venom dripping from his tongue. "If you lay one finger on Kagome I will kill you."

The girl Kagome seemed shocked at his words. She looked at Inuyasha as if she had never really seen him before. Miko had a feeling that it wasn't because of the _way _he had talked to Koga, but _what _he had said in her defense. Miko had no doubt that Inuyasha would, in fact, defend that girl to his death.

Kagome seemed to come to her senses because she stopped looking at Inuyasha with a dumb look on her face and shouted at the angry hanyou.

"Please, Inuyasha, stop this!" She seemed almost frantic and Miko knew that there were feelings between the two of them that stretched far deeper down than she had noticed on their past encounters with the strange duo. In fact, from the look the girl had given him, the two did not realize it either.

Inuyasha, however, was stuck in "defend Kagome" mode and charged at Koga in a rage, his eyes shifting color a bit before returning to the gold she recognized. It was so sudden and unexpected, Miko was not entirely sure she had seen it.

Miko saw Koga tense and she knew he must be far more exhausted than he was letting on, her anger at him and his supposed betrayal disappeared in a flash and she wanted nothing more than to run to his side and help him.

At the last second, as Inuyasha raised his sword high above his head, ready to bring it down on Koga's shoulders, her wolf king raised his claws and struck valiantly at the hanyou's sword arm.

Before Miko could realize what she was doing, she had taken off for him. Her feet pounded the dirt in her frantic dash to get to his side.

Inuyasha sat there, a stunned look on his face as he clutched his bleeding arm. Koga had shattered every bone connected to the sword, however, he did not strike soon enough, for the youkai had been run through with the gigantic sword. Koga had fallen to his knees coughing blood when Miko reached him. Tears streamed from her eyes, blurring her vision as he groped at the hilt of the sword, trying to pull it out.

"Oh, Koga," she moaned in fear as she grabbed ahold of it for him. "Don't move, you will only make it worse."

Koga blinked his eyes at her and sat still. With a terrible squelch Miko pulled the sword free, blood staining her fingers. "Oh God Koga," she fell to her knees beside him and gingerly touched his face. The blood from her fingers smeared across his cheek.

"Miko…" Koga choked out, blood trickling from his lips.

Out of the corner of her eyes, Miko saw a flash of red and turned to see Inuyasha raising his bloody sword over his head to finish off her king.

"Inuyasha, **SIT BOY!**" The enraged and cursing hanyou hit the dirt face first and Kagome ran past him barely pausing to check Inuyasha's obviously non-fatal wound.

"Oh, Koga, are you alright?" She said then noting his near unconscious state, turned to Miko and repeated the question. Miko was just about to say something about moving him and that she didn't need Kagome's help thank you very much when the raven haired girl turned her big brown eyes back to Koga.

Kagome reached around behind her back and grabbed an arrow from her quiver. Miko tensed and went to move forward to rend the priestesses' head from her shoulders when the arrow started to glow a blinding white light. Miko's jaw dropped as Kagome tuned the arrow point down and drove it deep into Koga's wound. Her hand never left the feathered end as the pure white light left the arrow and dissipated into Koga's body. When it ebbed, Miko noticed immediately that the wound was healed. The arrow was removed from Koga's now perfect flesh without leaving a mark behind to show its presence.

Koga's eyes fluttered open and, though the clarity was far from restored to his vision, Miko realized that he knew full well whom it was kneeling above him. Her assumptions were confirmed immediately when Koga reached out and cupped Kagome's face.

"Kagome," He sighed her name like a long lost lover and ran his fingers through her hair. "Thank you, for saving me."

Miko stood abruptly, trying to pull his attention over to her, but he had passed out. She didn't know what to think. She choked out a sob which she tried to stifle with her hand, but Kagome heard and turned her eyes to her; warm brown met cold green.

She took one last look at the man she almost thought she was in love with and bolted. All her run-ins with those Koga-zealots taught her the bad habit of running from her problems. This Koga thing was a doozy.

In a blind run once again, Miko tore through the forest. The branches of the trees around her tore at her flesh, now, rather than melting out of her path as they had done the night before. They seemed to be holding her back, telling her to go back and face him instead of running away from the very image of the man she had thought she loved.

Her breath caught in her throat as she tripped and hit the ground. There she sat, curled up in a tiny ball, just as she had the night before, and let it all out.

From behind her a soft voice spoke, startling her out of her reverie. "Why are you crying?" The voice itself was soothing, but she was so ashamed at both the state she was in and having been snuck up on that she feigned anger at what she soon noticed to be a very attractive amber-eyed youkai.

He looked down at her with an air of superiority and an aura surrounding him that was not all because of his luminescent white hair. The youkai extended his hand to help her off the ground which she struck out at without thinking. Having been so embarrassed she simply wanted to be left alone.

He jumped back, surprise only showing on his face for an instant before the cold emotionless mask was put back into place.

"Don't come near me!" Miko shouted in anguish, tears still streaming down her face. The very last thing she wanted at that moment was to have the pity of some stranger flaunted at her. No matter who he was.

The silver haired youkai smirked at her and turned to walk away, giving her what she asked for without another word. Suddenly, Miko found that she didn't want to be alone. She reached out to his retreating form and was about to call out to him when she caught a whiff of his scent. She snatched her hand back like it had been burnt and anger welled up in her again.

"Your blood stinks like that Inuyasha!" She lunged at his back not knowing exactly what it was she was going to do when she got there. In the blink of an eye, her adversary had disappeared. She hit the ground and started to spin around to take him on when he struck her from behind. She heard it before she felt it; the sound of metal tearing flesh, but when the feeling caught up to her, the pain sent her reeling. Stars filled her vision and she fell to her stomach in the grass, warm blood pouring out of her body in a thick oozing stream.

Miko cried out in agony, fighting with her torn back to get on her feet again. She was so helpless at this point that she knew if she couldn't she was as good as dead.

She struggled and grunted with pain, but somehow managed to get back up. The demon smirked at her again, his eyes glinting with amusement.

Miko mustered the last reserves of her strength and lunged for his throat. The action must have caught him off guard because rather than counterattack, he raised his hands to block her assault. Much to his surprise, though it too was carefully hidden, Miko feinted to the side and skidded to a stop, bracing herself upright on a tree.

The youkai reached to his side and again, was taken by surprise when his sword was not there.

"You stole the Tokijin," he said coolly reaching for his whip. "You will not live to regret that."

Miko lifted herself up off of the tree's trunk and took a fighting stance with the pilfered sword. It seemed to almost pulse in her hands as all around her was suddenly forgotten in the gleam of the blade. Only one all consuming thought filled her mind now, and that was to kill the opponent standing before her. Even the pain from her back wound and the moving around that made it increasingly worse was forgotten in her desire to eliminate this superior being from existence.

"And with it I shall kill you, friend of Inuyasha!" Her voice came out twisted and evil, but for some reason this thought meant nothing to her. The only thing that held her attention was the fact that her opponent was laughing.

She lunged at him and swung the blade wildly. With each motion of the blade, huge shock waves energy flowed from the weapon and enveloped his body; and with each swing of the blade, the youkai recovered and countered with a lash from his whip.

Miko knew somewhere deep in her mind that she should have collapsed from blood loss long ago, but for some reason she was still moving.

With one final counterattack, the youkai showed his superior strength by wrapping the whip's end around the blade and rending it from her hands.

After she fell to the ground, unconscious, he sheathed the sword and turned from her. Satisfied that she was still breathing.

_ How was she able to keep from being fully possessed? How was that pathetic half breed able to keep her mind? _Questions berated Lord Sesshomaru's mind as he made his way away from the baffling girl. She had fought and came far closer to besting him than he would ever dare admit. He would have to administer another experiment with her when she came to. His curiosity for her abilities kept him thinking enough to keep him from Jaken and the little Rin another couple of days.

It wasn't long after Sesshomaru's exit that Koga crawled into the clearing left by there battle and fell to her side, weeping. He lifted her blood soaked body from the dirt and limped his way back to their den. Guilt eating away at him because he knew, deep inside, that he was the reason she had fled the clearing with Kagome and Inuyasha.

"Don't worry, baby." He sighed to her unconscious form. "I am taking you home. I am so sorry… I love you."

Miko could not hear him.

* * *

**(A/N)** Thank you very much to all of you who are returning readers. I hope you find the story more satisfying in this state, andI will go on to finish it this time. Now to answer some questions before you have a chance to ask them: 

Yes, Inuyasha did in fact get close to his youkai state. This is why he was able to so easily best Koga. Also you will notice that when Miko entered the clearing where the battle was ensuing, Koga was already injured. Kagome only healed his most serious wound, so at the end of the chapter when he "_limped into the clearing"_ he is still very injured. Another question i got last time I posted this chapter was to the fact that Miko was able to wield the Tokijin. Well... in all reality, she wasn't. She was infact possesed and only retained her soul because of how devastating her defeat was. And last but not least, though Miko's name does mean "priestess" this is a coincidence thatI overlooked bcauseI like the name. No she does not have any special powers and no, that is not why she bested the Tokijin.

Thank you all and please review!


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